Bar ban policy is suspended

Tuesday

Sep 30, 2008 at 2:00 AM

PORTSMOUTH — The controversial barment letter initiative was suspended indefinitely Monday night after downtown restaurant and bar owners, and police, said the program was misrepresented to the public and needs refinement.

Adam Leech

PORTSMOUTH — The controversial barment letter initiative was suspended indefinitely Monday night after downtown restaurant and bar owners, and police, said the program was misrepresented to the public and needs refinement.

Police met with the Downtown Hospitality Association Monday to discuss the initiative and the negative media attention it has received during its two-week existence. After an hour long, members-only meeting, police and the DHA told the media the initiative needed some changes, but mostly the public needs a better understanding of its intent and procedure.

"Our top priority is the safety and well being of our employees and customers. We've been concerned the whole discussion surrounding this trespass notice has caused a fair amount of misconception in the public," said Peter Egelston, owner of the Portsmouth Brewery, speaking on behalf of the DHA. "Our emphasis really has always been to make sure all of our establishments are safe, hospitable places."

The intent of the program, which has been discussed by the DHA for more than a year, was to establish a way to prohibit the small percentage of unruly and potentially dangerous patrons from bar hopping after being kicked out of a bar or restaurant. Upon police response, the unruly patron would receive a "bar/restaurant trespass notification" that would ban the person from 14 city establishments for a specified time period. Copies would then be distributed to participating bars and restaurants.

Although some people, including local attorneys, questioned the legality of the program, Lt. Corey MacDonald maintained that it is a legitimate legal tool and refinements are not related to its legality.

Some of the changes discussed involved a number of different safeguards or clarifications, according to Police Chief Michael Magnant. They include putting barment power solely in the hands of a manager or owner — rather than employees — and ensuring there is a universal expectation about what behavior would lead to the ban. Magnant also said police must respond to the incident and that all participating businesses would have the option to "opt out" and allow any patron if they see fit.

Egelston said the clarification was key in his decision to participate in the program moving forward. He made his business one of the original participants, but decided to pull out shortly after.

"My primary concern was our ability to control our own business and not be reliant on the judgement of someone without understanding the circumstances," he said. "That was an important clarification."

Many of the DHA members said they received negative feedback from patrons following media coverage of the program. TJ's owner Bethany Hayes said one of her patrons thought if the restaurant refused to serve them they would then be banned from all 14 establishments.

"It was very aggressively represented," said Hayes. "As a result, people did not take time to do any further investigating. So they made assumptions."

Jack Blalock, owner of Old Ferry Landing, said the intent was never to create a "blacklist," but that is how it was presented.

"It was just to provide bar and restaurant owners another tool to protect our customers and our employees from illegal criminal behavior," said Blalock, who is also the city's assistant mayor. "So one customer who has done something criminal can't just move to another location."

The DHA, which meets every two months, did not set a time frame in which the program would be reinstated.

Advertise

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
seacoastonline.com ~ 111 New Hampshire Ave., Portsmouth, NH 03801 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service